Sweeping and Suction Device, Dust-collecting Box Thereof, and Cleaning Robot Using the Same

ABSTRACT

The present invention discloses a sweeping and suction device and a dust-collecting box thereof and a cleaning robot using the same, wherein the cleaning robot comprises the dust-collecting box connecting with the sweeping and suction device; when the cleaning robot is operating and moving, protruding tube bodies of the sweeping and suction device sweep the surface to be cleaned to push the dust and dirt away from the surface to be cleaned; then the cleaning robot guides the outside air to flow from the protruding tube bodies into the dust-collecting box, thereby allowing to remove the dust and dirt easily from the surface to be cleaned and to transfer the dust and dirt to the dust-collecting box by using the sweeping and suction device to reach into and to sweep the surface to be cleaned.

The present application is based on, and claims priority from, the Taiwanese Republic of China application number 106128225, filed on Aug. 21, 2017, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a robot, and more particularly to a cleaning robot comprising of a dust-collecting box and a sweeping and suction device.

2. Description of the Prior Art

With the penetration of various smart home devices into all aspects of life, in particular, cleaning robots can be regarded as one of the relatively skilled appliances, and by applying artificial intelligence control, cleaning robots can automatically move back and forth on the floor to clean up dust and dirt.

Cleaning effect is one of the priorities of cleaning robots, and it will vary with the design of sweeping brushes and vacuuming modules, wherein the two designs need to coordinate with each other, otherwise the cleaning effect will be greatly reduced. U.S. Pat. No. 7,200,892 discloses a robot cleaner with an adjustable brush in which the brush can be adjusted with respect to the floor to be cleaned, wherein the robot cleaner comprises a suction port provided at the rear of the brush, and the robot cleaner is designed so that the air is guided to flow from the brush to the suction port for the latter to collect the dust and dirt. Similarly, Taiwan Patent No. I481377 discloses an autonomous cleaning device, which comprises two suction ports operated by negative pressure; one of the suction ports is located at the front of the walking path, while the other one is located in the rear of the moving path. In this case, the use of multiple suction ports can facilitate cleaning effect.

However, the above-mentioned cleaning method use brushes to sweep the dust and dirt to the suction port, it fails to achieve desirable cleaning effect because the carpet is not flat and the brushes made of flexible materials cannot smoothly push the dust and dirt away from the carpet. On the other hand, even if cleaning robots are designed with multiple suction ports, the cleaning robots cannot rely solely on negative pressure to draw all the dust and dirt from the carpet. Therefore, it is necessary to propose a new type of cleaning robot to improve the cleaning effect.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the above problems, the present invention discloses a sweeping and suction device, a dust-collecting box thereof, and a cleaning robot using the same. The sweeping and suction device can help improve the cleaning effect of the cleaning robot.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a sweeping and suction device comprising a connecting portion and a plurality of protruding tube bodies. The connecting portion provides connection with an airflow inlet of a dust-collecting box, the plurality of protruding tube bodies is disposed on the surface of the connecting portion relative to the airflow inlet and extending towards the surface to be cleaned, each one of the plurality of protruding tube bodies comprises a first opening and second opening at each end respectively, the first opening is connected with the airflow inlet of the dust-collecting box, the second opening draws the dust and dirt on the outside and transfers the dust and dirt to the dust-collecting box through the protruding tube body.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a dust-collecting box comprising a case body and the sweeping and suction device as described above. The case body is disposed in a cleaning robot; the case body comprises an accommodating space, an airflow outlet, and an airflow inlet. The accommodating space is disposed in the case body for accommodating the dust and dirt to be drawn therein. The airflow outlet of the case body is disposed relative to the position where the air is guided by the cleaning robot to flow out of the dust-collecting box; and the airflow outlet is in communication with the accommodating space. The airflow inlet is disposed at the side of the case body facing the surface to be cleaned.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a cleaning robot comprising the dust-collecting box as described above.

When the cleaning robot is operating and moving, the plurality of protruding tube bodies sweeps the surface to be cleaned to push the dust and dirt away from the surface to be cleaned (such as the root of the carpet or blanket); then the cleaning robot guides the outside air to flow from the second opening of the plurality of protruding tube bodies into the accommodating space; in the meantime, the dust and dirt will be kept inside the accommodating space by the filter disposed at the airflow outlet, while the air flowing into the accommodating space will be guided by the cleaning robot to flow out of the case body through the airflow outlet.

Therefore, the present invention is advantageous in:

-   -   1. The sweeping and suction device can sweep the surface to be         cleaned (such as a carpet or a blanket) to easily push the dust         and dirt away from the surface to be cleaned.     -   2. The sweeping and suction device comprises protruding tube         bodies extending towards the surface to be cleaned and thus can         reach deeply into the surface to be cleaned and sweep the root         of the surface to be cleaned.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Please refer to the detailed description of the present invention and its accompanying drawings to further understand the technical features and advantages of the present invention, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a structural view of a sweeping and suction device, a dust-collecting box, and a cleaning robot using the same;

FIG. 2 illustrates an embodiment of the sweeping and suction device and the dust-collecting box of the present invention;

FIG. 3 illustrates an embodiment of the dust-collecting box of the present invention;

FIG. 4 illustrates another embodiment of the sweeping and suction device and the dust-collecting box of the present invention; and

FIG. 5 illustrates an embodiment of the cleaning robot of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Please refer to FIG. 1, which illustrates a sweeping and suction device 1 of the present invention. Preferably, the sweeping and suction device 1 comprises a connecting portion 10 and a plurality of protruding tube bodies 12. The connecting portion 10 connects the sweeping and suction device 1 with an airflow inlet 204 of the dust-collecting box 2. The plurality of protruding tube bodies 12 is arranged on the surface of the connecting portion 10 and located relative to the airflow inlet 204; the plurality of protruding tube bodies 12 can be formed in a cylinder or polygon shape and is extending towards the surface to be cleaned. Please also refer to FIG. 2, the plurality of protruding tube bodies 12 forms an angle of 90 degrees or any other tilt angles with the surface of the dust-collecting box 2. Each one of the plurality of protruding tube bodies 12 comprises a first opening 120 and a second opening 122 at each end respectively, wherein the first opening 120 is connected with the airflow inlet 204 of the dust-collecting box 2, the second opening 122 draws the dust and dirt on the outside and transfers the dust and dirt to the dust-collecting box 2 through the protruding tube body 12.

Please refer to FIG. 2, in an embodiment of the present invention, each one of the plurality of protruding tube bodies 12 is disposed with a third opening 124 at a perimeter thereof for connecting the inside of each one of the plurality of protruding tube bodies 12 to the outside environment. Therefore, when the plurality of protruding tube bodies 12 is sweeping the surface to be cleaned (such as carpet or blanket), the second opening 122 cam reach deeply into the root of the surface to be cleaned to draw the dust and dirt at the root to the dust-collecting box 2, and the third opening 124 can further draw the dust and dirt attached to the fibers of the surface to be cleaned to the dust-collecting box 2 to help increase the contact area for drawing the dust and dirt and improve the cleaning effect.

Please refer to FIG. 1 and FIG. 3, which illustrate the dust-collecting box 2 of the present invention. Preferably, the dust-collecting box 2 comprises a case body 20, a case cover 22, a filter 24, and the sweeping and suction device 1 as described above, wherein the filter 24 is disposed in the case body 20, and the case cover 22 is placed on top of the case body 20 to complete the assembly of the dust-collecting box 2. The case body 20 comprises an accommodating space 200, an airflow outlet 202, and an airflow inlet 204. The accommodating space 200 is disposed in the case body 20 and provided for accommodating the dust and dirt kept in the accommodating space 200 by the filter 24. The airflow outlet 202 of the case body 20 is disposed relative to the position where the air is guided by the cleaning robot 3 to flow out of the dust-collecting box 2; and the airflow outlet 202 is in communication with the accommodating space 200. The airflow inlet 204 is disposed at the side of the case body 20 facing the surface to be cleaned. Now please refer to FIG. 2 again, wherein the case body 20 further comprises a plurality of first connecting units 206, the connecting portion 10 is connected with the case body 20 and comprises a plurality of second connecting units 100 disposed thereon to face the airflow inlet 204. The plurality of first connecting units 206 is disposed near the airflow inlet 204; the plurality of second connecting units is disposed on the connecting portion 10 to face the airflow inlet 204; the plurality of first connecting units 206 and the plurality of second connecting units 100 corresponds with each other, wherein the plurality of first connecting units 206 and the plurality of second connecting units 100 can be a fastening mechanism comprising concave and convex portions or buckles and holes.

Please refer to FIG. 1, wherein the cleaning robot 3 of the present invention comprises the dust-collecting box 2, the cover 34, the dust collecting space 36, and the dust collecting port 38. When the dust-collecting box 2 is disposed in the dust collecting space 36, the airflow inlet 204 of the dust-collecting box 2 is disposed to correspond with the dust collecting port 38 of the cleaning robot 3, in the meantime, the sweeping and suction device 1 of the dust-collecting box 2 protrudes of the dust collecting port 38, and the cover 34 is disposed on top of the dust-collecting box 2 to complete the assembly of the cleaning robot 3. When the cleaning robot 3 is operating and moving, the plurality of protruding tube bodies 12 sweeps the surface to be cleaned to push the dust and dirt away from the surface to be cleaned (such as the root of the carpet or blanket); then the cleaning robot 3 guides the outside air to flow from the second opening 122 of the plurality of protruding tube bodies 12 into the accommodating space 200; in the meantime, the dust and dirt will be kept inside the accommodating space 200 by the filter 24 disposed at the airflow outlet 202, while the air flowing into the accommodating space 200 will be guided by the cleaning robot 3 to flow out of the dust-collecting box 2 through the airflow outlet 202.

Please refer to FIG. 2, wherein a tilt direction of the plurality of protruding tube bodies 12 of the sweeping and suction device 1 can be the same (D1) as the moving direction of the cleaning robot 3, the opposite (D3) of moving direction of the cleaning robot 3, no specific direction as direction D2, or a randomly selected direction comprising D1, D2, D3 and other directions with respect to the moving direction of the cleaning robot 3.

Please refer to FIG. 4, the difference between this embodiment and the previous embodiment lies in that the sweeping and suction device 1 and the dust-collecting box 2 are formed in one piece.

Now please refer to FIG. 5, in another embodiment of the present invention, the dust-collecting box 2 and the sweeping and suction device 1 can be those from any one of the two embodiments described above, and the cleaning robot 3 further comprises a roller element 30, or an air blowing portion 32, or a combination thereof. The roller element 30 is disposed at a side of the cleaning robot 3 facing the surface to be cleaned and near the airflow inlet 204, the roller element 30 is provided for sweeping the surface to be cleaned to push the dust and dirt away from the surface to be cleaned. The roller element 30 can work with the sweeping and suction device 1 to further improve the performance of pushing the dust and dirt away from the surface to be cleaned. The air blowing portion 32 is disposed near the airflow inlet 204, the air blowing portion 32 is designed to blow the air towards the airflow inlet 204 and the surface to be cleaned, so that the sweeping and suction device 1 near the airflow inlet 204 can push the foreign dust and dirt away from the surface to be cleaned and the dust-collecting box 2 can draw the dust and dirt more easily, thereby facilitating better cleaning effect

Many changes and modifications in the above described embodiment of the invention can, of course, be carried out without departing from the scope thereof. Accordingly, to promote the progress in science and the useful arts, the invention is disclosed and is intended to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A sweeping and suction device comprising: a connecting portion for providing connection with an airflow inlet of a dust-collecting box; and a plurality of protruding tube bodies, wherein the plurality of protruding tube bodies is disposed on the surface of the connecting portion relative to the airflow inlet and extending towards the surface to be cleaned, each one of the plurality of protruding tube bodies comprises a first opening and a second opening at each end respectively, the first opening is connected with the airflow inlet of the dust-collecting box, the second opening draws the dust and dirt on the outside and transfers the dust and dirt to the dust-collecting box through the protruding tube body.
 2. The sweeping and suction device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plurality of protruding tube bodies is formed in a cylinder or polygon shape.
 3. The sweeping and suction device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plurality of protruding tube bodies is arranged in an array.
 4. The sweeping and suction device as claimed in claim 1, wherein each one of the plurality of protruding tube bodies is disposed with a third opening at a perimeter thereof for connecting the inside of each one of the plurality of protruding tube bodies to the outside environment.
 5. The sweeping and suction device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the protruding tube bodies forms an angle of 90 degrees or any other tilt angles with the surface of the dust-collecting box.
 6. A dust-collecting box comprising the sweeping and suction device as claimed in claim 1 comprising: a case body being disposed in a cleaning robot, the case body comprising: an accommodating space disposed in the case body for accommodating the dust and dirt to be drawn therein; an airflow outlet disposed relative to the case body and in communication with the accommodating space; and the airflow inlet disposed at the side of the case body facing the surface to be cleaned; a case cover to be assembled with the case body; a filter disposed between the air flowing out of the dust-collecting box of the cleaning robot and the airflow outlet.
 7. The dust-collecting box as claimed in claim 6, wherein a tilt direction of the plurality of protruding tube bodies and the surface to be cleaned is the same, the opposite, or randomly selected with respect to the moving direction of the cleaning robot.
 8. The dust-collecting box as claimed in claim 6, wherein the case body comprises a plurality of first connecting units disposed near the airflow inlet, the connecting portion comprises a plurality of second connecting units disposed thereon to face the airflow inlet, the plurality of first connecting units and the plurality of second connecting units corresponds with each other.
 9. The dust-collecting box as claimed in claim 6, wherein the dust-collecting box and the sweeping and suction device are formed in one piece.
 10. A cleaning robot comprising the dust-collecting box as claimed in claim 6, wherein the cleaning robot further comprises a roller element disposed at a side facing the surface to be cleaned and near the airflow inlet, the roller element is provided for sweeping the surface to be cleaned to push the dust and dirt away from the surface to be cleaned.
 11. The cleaning robot as claimed in claim 10, wherein the cleaning robot further comprises an air blowing portion disposed near the airflow inlet, so that the air blowing portion blows the air towards the airflow inlet and the surface to be cleaned to push the foreign dust and dirt away from the surface to be cleaned.
 12. The cleaning robot as claimed in claim 11, wherein the cleaning robot further comprises an air blowing portion disposed near the airflow inlet, so that the air blowing portion blows the air towards the airflow inlet and the surface to be cleaned to push the foreign dust and dirt away from the surface to be cleaned. 